The 2,000-word list for Age 21
A reference for young adults exploring words independently or with support. The 2,000 entries are choices for reading and conversation, not a requirement for Age 21. Advanced entries are optional specialist extensions. Age guidance.
Beginner 1–799 · Intermediate 800–1549 · Advanced 1550–2000 · How to use the bank
Words run alphabetically within each band. Use the letter links or your browser’s Find in Page to locate a word. Every entry is visible below. On smaller screens, swipe a table sideways if needed.
Move through this 24-age collection: All 2,000-word lists by age (1–24) · Previous: Age 20 · Next: Age 22 · How to use this bank. These are reference choices, not age-based word quotas.
Beginner: words 1–799
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · W
| Sequence and initial | Words, in sequence |
|---|---|
| 0001–0017 · A | accident-prone, addictive, adorable, after-hours, after-school, age-old, all-important, all-inclusive, all-night, all-out, all-powerful, all-purpose, all-weather, alright, ankle-deep, around-the-clock, attachable |
| 0018–0037 · B | backmost, behind-the-scenes, belly-up, belowground, bendable, bindable, bit-by-bit, bitty, black-and-blue, black-and-white, blistery, blocky, blow-by-blow, blowy, bone-dry, bookable, bottle-green, bottommost, bouldery, brand-new |
| 0038–0049 · B | bribable, bridgeable, broken-down, buddy-buddy, built-up, bulgy, bumper-to-bumper, bunchy, bundled-up, burnable, burnt-out, buttony |
| 0050–0069 · C | cared-for, carroty, case-by-case, cast-iron, chewable, citywide, classifiable, clattery, cleanable, climbable, close-set, closed-door, cobwebby, collapsible, combat-ready, combinable, continent-wide, contrasty, cookie-cutter, corrosion-resistant |
| 0070–0076 · C | countrywide, countywide, crease-resistant, cuddlesome, cushiony, custom-made, cuttable |
| 0077–0096 · D | danceable, datable, day-and-night, day-by-day, day-old, day-to-day, decayable, deep-sea, deep-set, deep-water, delightful, describable, destroyable, disastrous, disloyal, disobedient, do-it-yourself, doddery, door-to-door, double-quick |
| 0097–0102 · D | downstairs, dozy, draughty, drip-dry, dual-purpose, dual-use |
| 0103–0111 · E | earthborn, eastside, end-to-end, error-prone, ever-present, excitable, expectable, explosive, exquisite |
| 0112–0131 · F | fab, face-to-face, factory-made, fair-and-square, fancy-free, fantastic, far-off, far-out, fashionable, fat-free, fatal, fathomable, feline, ferny, filmy, fine-tooth, fire-retardant, flabby, flame-retardant, flash-frozen |
| 0132–0151 · F | flavourful, flavoursome, flea-bitten, fluky, forcible, fordable, foreign-born, forgettable, formal, fortunate, foxy, free-range, fresh-cut, fringy, frolicsome, full-dress, full-face, full-grown, full-length, full-page |
| 0152–0155 · F | full-size, full-strength, full-term, futuristic |
| 0156–0168 · G | gainful, gas-tight, gassy, general-purpose, glimmery, good-time, goody-goody, grabby, graspable, grief-stricken, ground-floor, gruesome, grungy |
| 0169–0188 · H | half-length, half-size, half-time, hand-hewn, hand-to-hand, hand-to-mouth, hands-down, hands-off, hands-on, handsewn, handwoven, hard-and-fast, hard-bitten, hard-core, hard-fought, hard-line, hardbound, harmful, head-in-the-clouds, hearable |
| 0189–0208 · H | heatable, heaven-sent, heavenward, heavy-laden, heavyset, hell-bent, hellish, helter-skelter, high-altitude, high-class, high-energy, high-fidelity, high-grade, high-level, high-octane, high-performance, high-potential, high-pressure, high-rise, high-strung |
| 0209–0228 · H | high-tech, high-tension, high-ticket, high-top, high-velocity, high-voltage, high-yield, hindmost, hip-length, hit-and-run, ho-hum, holey, homeward-bound, hopped-up, horrendous, horror-stricken, horse-and-buggy, horse-drawn, hourlong, house-proud |
| 0229–0232 · H | house-to-house, housebroken, humongous, hunky-dory |
| 0233–0252 · I | ice-cold, ice-free, ignorant, illegible, immaculate, impenetrable, improvable, in-between, in-bounds, in-chief, in-your-face, inadvisable, inapplicable, inattentive, inborn, inbound, incalculable, incessant, inconspicuous, inconvenient |
| 0253–0272 · I | indecipherable, indestructible, industrial, industrial-strength, inelegant, ineligible, inescapable, inexcusable, inexpert, inexpressible, ingrown, injurious, inlaid, inopportune, inside-out, insightful, inspirational, instinctive, instructive, intolerant |
| 0273–0273 · I | itsy-bitsy |
| 0274–0276 · J | jaggy, jet-black, junior-grade |
| 0277–0284 · K | kid-glove, killable, king-size, kittenish, knee-deep, knee-length, knobby, knocked-out |
| 0285–0304 · L | labour-intensive, ladder-proof, laid-back, laid-off, larger-than-life, last-ditch, last-minute, last-place, lathery, latter-day, lead-free, left-hand, leftish, leftmost, lendable, lethal, life-and-death, life-support, light-sensitive, light-tight |
| 0305–0324 · L | lighter-than-air, lily-white, lite, little-known, liveborn, livelong, locker-room, long-ago, long-distance, long-familiar, long-life, long-play, long-staple, long-time, looseleaf, low-altitude, low-beam, low-budget, low-class, low-cost |
| 0325–0340 · L | low-cut, low-density, low-grade, low-level, low-pressure, low-rise, low-set, low-tech, low-tension, low-voltage, lower-class, lower-middle-class, lowermost, luscious, luxe, luxurious |
| 0341–0360 · M | machine-accessible, machine-driven, machine-made, macho, made-to-order, made-up, maggoty, make-believe, man-made, man-portable, man-to-man, manoeuvrable, marriageable, mathematical, matter-of-fact, mazy, medium-dry, medium-large, medium-size, meltable |
| 0361–0380 · M | memorable, middle-class, middle-level, middlemost, midwestern, mistakable, mixable, mixed-up, monthlong, moonstruck, mortal, moss-grown, moth-eaten, moth-resistant, mouldy, mountainous, mud-brick, multi-ethnic, multilane, multilevel |
| 0381–0386 · M | multiple-choice, multipurpose, multistorey, mum, murderous, muscle-bound |
| 0387–0406 · N | nationwide, native-born, naval, neck-deep, nectar-rich, needful, neglectful, nethermost, never-say-die, new-made, new-mown, new-sprung, next-to-last, nightlong, no-account, no-go, no-good, no-hit, no-nonsense, no-win |
| 0407–0426 · N | non-zero, nonabsorbent, nonaddictive, nonadhesive, nonadjacent, nonaggressive, nonalcoholic, noncompetitive, noncontagious, noncontroversial, nondisposable, nonfatal, nonfinancial, nonfunctional, nonhuman, nonindustrial, nonlethal, nonmusical, nonprescription, nonproductive |
| 0427–0441 · N | nonpublic, nonracial, nonracist, nonrandom, nonresidential, nontraditional, nontransferable, nonunion, nonwashable, north-central, northbound, northeastern, northern, northernmost, northwestern |
| 0442–0461 · O | oaken, oaten, obtainable, odd-job, odds-on, off-and-on, off-base, off-guard, off-key, off-limits, off-street, off-the-peg, off-the-rack, off-the-shelf, off-the-shoulder, off-white, offside, old-line, old-time, olden |
| 0462–0481 · O | on-key, on-street, on-the-scene, on-the-spot, one-horse, one-man, one-on-one, one-party, one-person, one-piece, one-time, one-to-one, one-way, one-woman, onside, oozy, open-air, open-and-shut, open-plan, out-and-out |
| 0482–0501 · O | out-of-bounds, out-of-pocket, out-of-school, out-of-the-way, out-of-town, outbound, outsize, outspread, outward-bound, oven-ready, over-the-counter, over-the-hill, over-the-top, overabundant, overactive, overambitious, overanxious, overarm, overeager, overenthusiastic |
| 0502–0514 · O | overfamiliar, overfull, overgenerous, overhand, overhasty, overindulgent, overladen, overland, overmuch, overprotective, overripe, overzealous, owlish |
| 0515–0534 · P | packable, paid-up, pain-free, panicky, paramount, pardonable, parental, participatory, passable, passive, patriotic, peachy, person-to-person, phlegmy, piebald, piecemeal, piggish, pint-size, pitch-black, pitch-dark |
| 0535–0554 · P | playable, pleasurable, plushy, pocket-size, pocketable, point-of-sale, positionable, post-free, postal, postwar, potent, pound-foolish, poverty-stricken, powder-puff, power-driven, prankish, prayerful, precast, predominant, preferable |
| 0555–0573 · P | preparatory, present-day, preservable, prestigious, prewar, pricey, primitive, pristine, private-enterprise, proficient, prominent, prone, proverbial, publishable, punch-drunk, puncturable, punitive, purchasable, purpose-made |
| 0574–0577 · Q | queen-size, quick-change, quick-frozen, quits |
| 0578–0597 · R | razor-sharp, reachable, ready-to-eat, rearmost, rearward, rechargeable, recreational, rectifiable, red-carpet, red-hot, red-letter, redbrick, reedy, reefy, reformable, removable, rentable, respective, revengeful, ribbony |
| 0598–0616 · R | right-hand, right-side-out, right-side-up, rightmost, rock-bottom, rockbound, rot-resistant, rotatable, rough-and-ready, rough-cut, rough-spoken, roughhewn, roundish, ruinous, run-of-the-mill, run-resistant, runty, rust-free, rust-resistant |
| 0617–0636 · S | saddle-sore, salvageable, sandpapery, sane, sarcastic, satisfactory, satisfiable, sawn-off, scattershot, schoolwide, scornful, screechy, screwball, screwy, scrubby, scummy, sea-level, seaborne, second-class, second-rate |
| 0637–0656 · S | see-through, seeable, self-consistent, self-contradictory, self-destructive, self-explanatory, self-made, self-respectful, sellable, semiannual, semiconscious, semidark, semiformal, semiofficial, semipermanent, semiprecious, semiprivate, semipublic, separable, severe |
| 0657–0676 · S | shimmery, shipshape, shivery, shockable, shopworn, short-order, short-range, showery, shrimpy, shrinkable, shrubby, shuddery, shut-in, side-to-side, sidearm, sinkable, skin-deep, skin-tight, skint, skyward |
| 0677–0696 · S | slam-bang, sleety, slivery, slouchy, small-time, smoggy, smoke-free, smooth-shaven, smudgy, snaky, snarky, snazzy, snoopy, snorty, snow-clad, so-so, sold-out, solvable, sometime, soppy |
| 0697–0716 · S | sought-after, soundable, spaced-out, spacey, spendable, spick-and-span, spidery, spinnable, spiritual, splinterproof, splintery, spoilable, spooky, spur-of-the-moment, square-built, squatty, squawky, squeaky, squinty, stage-struck |
| 0717–0736 · S | stainable, stand-alone, state-of-the-art, statewide, stationary, stay-at-home, steamy, steerable, stick-in-the-mud, stick-on, stingy, stinky, stock-still, stocky, stone-broke, stone-cold, stone-dead, stone-sober, stoppable, stopped-up |
| 0737–0756 · S | store-bought, storm-beaten, stormbound, stormproof, straight-out, streaky, stressful, strikebound, stripped-down, stripy, strung-out, stubby, stuck-up, stumpy, successful, sufferable, suggestible, suggestive, summery, sunstruck |
| 0757–0766 · S | superfine, superhuman, supernatural, superstitious, supportable, supreme, sure-enough, sure-fire, swanky, swishy |
| 0767–0786 · T | tailor-made, talkative, talky, tasteful, teachable, teensy, teetotal, tempest-swept, terrific, terror-stricken, textbook, thinkable, third-rate, thirdhand, threadbare, thready, three-dimensional, three-piece, three-way, throaty |
| 0787–0795 · T | thunderstruck, thundery, tigerish, tight-knit, tillable, timeworn, trashy, trigger-happy, tutorial |
| 0796–0797 · U | unaffectionate, unthankful |
| 0798–0799 · W | well-set, wolfish |
Intermediate: words 800–1549
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · X
| Sequence and initial | Words, in sequence |
|---|---|
| 0800–0819 · A | absorptive, accelerative, accommodative, accordant, accretive, accumulative, acidulous, acrophobic, activistic, adaptational, adjustive, adulterant, adulterous, advertent, afflictive, aftermost, agelong, aggregative, agitative, agoraphobic |
| 0820–0839 · A | aldermanic, alleviative, altitudinal, ambulant, amendatory, anarchistic, animalistic, anti-intellectual, antiauthoritarian, anticipant, anticipative, antidotal, aphoristic, apish, apostolic, appealable, appeasable, appointive, apportionable, apprehensible |
| 0840–0859 · A | appropriable, approximative, aquiline, arbitrable, archangelic, archdiocesan, archducal, architectonic, argent, artefactual, articulative, artsy-craftsy, arty, ascribable, asinine, aslant, aslope, assailable, assaultive, assistive |
| 0860–0870 · A | asteroidal, astral, astrological, asunder, attentional, attractable, attritional, avant-garde, avertible, avocational, aweigh |
| 0871–0890 · B | bacchanal, bacchanalian, bailable, balky, bang-up, baptismal, barky, bearish, beatable, beauteous, beery, behindhand, benefic, biannual, bibliophilic, bicentennial, bilious, bimanual, binaural, bionic |
| 0891–0910 · B | biracial, blabby, black-market, black-tie, blear, blimpish, blithesome, blockish, blood-and-guts, blubbery, blue-ribbon, blue-sky, boffo, bondable, bone-idle, born-again, bottom-up, bovine, bowery, bowfront |
| 0911–0924 · B | braggy, brassbound, brindle, broken-field, bromidic, bronzy, brunette, brushy, brut, bunglesome, burdensome, burry, bush-league, buxom |
| 0925–0944 · C | cabalistic, cadaveric, caddish, calculable, calculative, candescent, cankerous, cantonal, capsular, care-laden, carnal, cartilaginous, catchpenny, catechetical, catholic, cattish, catty, centigrade, centralistic, centric |
| 0945–0964 · C | cervine, cetacean, chaffy, challengeable, chanceful, chartreuse, cheapjack, chichi, chintzy, chockablock, choky, churned-up, circumferential, citrous, civil-libertarian, clangorous, classical, clausal, claustrophobic, clean-cut |
| 0965–0984 · C | clean-shaven, cleavable, clinker-built, cloak-and-dagger, cloddish, cloggy, cloistral, closed-circuit, cloven, cloze, clubbable, coalescent, cock-a-hoop, cockamamie, coeducational, coexistent, cogitative, cold-temperate, coltish, comatose |
| 0985–1004 · C | combustive, commercial-grade, commonsense, communicable, commutable, commutative, companionate, compartmental, conceivable, conciliable, condemnable, condemnatory, conducive, confederative, confirmable, conformable, confutable, congratulatory, congregational, conquerable |
| 1005–1024 · C | conscience-smitten, consequent, consolable, consumptive, contractable, conventual, copacetic, coquettish, corpulent, correlational, corruptive, corvine, cost-effective, cost-efficient, costive, counteractive, creaseproof, criminological, cross-cultural, cross-linguistic |
| 1025–1039 · C | cross-sectional, crosstown, crustal, cubical, cubistic, cuboid, cultural, curative, curricular, curvaceous, curvilinear, custom-built, cut-price, cut-rate, cyan |
| 1040–1059 · D | damnable, damnatory, dearly-won, decipherable, decollete, decompositional, deep-laid, defendable, deferent, deflective, degenerative, deleterious, delusory, demon-ridden, demoniac, departmental, depletable, depressant, desirous, destructible |
| 1060–1077 · D | developmental, diagnosable, diametric, diversionary, divine, do-or-die, dovish, down-and-out, down-to-earth, downfield, downmarket, downscale, dry-shod, dual, ducal, duple, duteous, dyspeptic |
| 1078–1093 · E | ecclesiastical, educative, effaceable, effete, efflorescent, effulgent, eldritch, elephantine, ellipsoidal, elongate, elucidative, elvish, eponymous, equiangular, equine, extrusive |
| 1094–1097 · F | filamentous, fissile, flexuous, flocculent |
| 1098–1102 · G | gaseous, globular, glutinous, gracile, grammatical |
| 1103–1105 · H | haptic, homonymic, homonymous |
| 1106–1106 · I | interlinear |
| 1107–1125 · L | laboured, large-hearted, large-minded, lay, leechlike, letter-perfect, licentious, light-fingered, ligneous, lilting, loathsome, lobate, long-winded, loverlike, low-key, lowbrow, lunate, lunisolar, lyrical |
| 1126–1145 · M | magisterial, manly, many-sided, matronly, meditative, melancholic, mephitic, metaphoric, metrological, mingy, miserly, mobbish, modernistic, modish, monaural, monodic, monomaniacal, mop-headed, morphological, motile |
| 1146–1149 · M | motional, murmurous, mutinous, muzzy |
| 1150–1169 · N | naif, nail-biting, nerveless, newfangled, nimble-fingered, noble-minded, nodular, nonassertive, noncombustible, nonindulgent, noninterchangeable, nonlinguistic, nonliterary, nonmechanical, nonpersonal, nonrestrictive, nonrigid, nonspeaking, nonsubjective, nonvolatile |
| 1170–1185 · O | obscene, obsessional, obsessive, obtrusive, off-colour, off-the-cuff, off-the-wall, old-hat, old-world, olympian, omnidirectional, operatic, outdoorsy, overemotional, overmodest, ovine |
| 1186–1205 · P | pacific, parenthesis, parrotlike, participle, particularisation, partitive, partsong, passionless, patois, peaceable, pent-up, penult, percussive, pernickety, perusal, pettifoggery, phone-in, phonic, phonogram, phrasal |
| 1206–1225 · P | pictographic, piratical, pitiable, placatory, plainchant, plainsong, plaudit, playscript, plosive, politic, polysyllable, ponderable, posit, posthumous, prate, prayerbook, preachment, preachy, precis, precognition |
| 1226–1245 · P | prelim, prepositional, prescript, prideful, priestlike, priestly, primal, processional, professorial, proffer, promiscuous, pronouncement, propaganda, psychedelic, psychobabble, puffery, punctuation, pungency, purblind, puritanical |
| 1246–1247 · P | put-upon, pyrographic |
| 1248–1250 · Q | quadrangular, quadrupedal, quarterly |
| 1251–1270 · R | racy, rakish, rambunctious, reaffirmation, reassertion, rebroadcast, recessive, recitation, recluse, recommendation, reconsideration, red-faced, redefinition, reissue, remonstration, renouncement, repellent, repentant, repetitiveness, replete |
| 1271–1290 · R | reprehension, reproach, reproval, reptilian, repugnant, requiem, restatement, retiring, retronym, retrospection, retroversion, reverberative, reverential, revilement, ribald, rickety, rictus, ridiculousness, riotous, risque |
| 1291–1299 · R | romantic, roster, rotundity, roundelay, rudiments, rumbustious, ruralism, rushy, rusticism |
| 1300–1319 · S | safe-conduct, salaam, salutation, salutatory, salvo, scatology, scatty, schmaltzy, schoolbook, schoolboyish, schoolgirlish, schwa, scorecard, scrawl, screenplay, self-accusation, self-aggrandising, self-appointed, self-conceited, self-condemnation |
| 1320–1339 · S | self-contradiction, self-denying, self-expression, self-incrimination, self-involved, self-justification, self-loving, self-praise, self-reproach, self-reproof, self-restraining, self-styled, semiabstract, semicolon, semimonthly, semivowel, semiweekly, sensational, senseless, sentimentalism |
| 1340–1359 · S | seriocomedy, serious-minded, sexist, sharp-worded, shirty, sickish, sidesplitter, significance, silver-tongued, simian, sinuous, sisterlike, skywriting, slanguage, slangy, slaphappy, slavish, sleazy, sleepy-eyed, sleepyheaded |
| 1360–1379 · S | slickness, sloganeering, slushy, smarmy, smooth-spoken, smooth-tongued, sniffy, sobersided, socialistic, societal, soldierly, soporific, sorcerous, soul-stirring, speakable, speechmaking, speller, spiffy, splurge, squalid |
| 1380–1399 · S | squelcher, stagey, starry-eyed, steady-going, stenograph, stereophonic, stilted, stinger, stolid, stonyhearted, stouthearted, straight-from-the-shoulder, strawman, strong-minded, studbook, styleless, subaquatic, subhead, submission, submissive |
| 1400–1408 · S | supernumerary, supertitle, sure-handed, surrealistic, surtitle, swingy, swinish, swollen-headed, sylvan |
| 1409–1428 · T | tablature, talebearing, taradiddle, tawdry, teach-in, telecast, telefilm, telegraphese, telegraphic, telegraphy, telepathy, televangelism, tenet, terseness, tetralogy, thanksgiving, thigh-slapper, tincture, tongue-lashing, tongueless |
| 1429–1444 · T | torrid, traitorous, transformable, transitional, transmutable, travelogue, treasonable, triad, trickery, trigram, trilateral, trisyllable, troth, trumpery, turbid, two-dimensional |
| 1445–1464 · U | ulterior, ultimatum, ululation, umbrageous, unagitated, unargumentative, unassertive, unassured, unbefitting, unbeholden, unbelieving, unblushing, unbridled, unceremonious, uncheerful, uncomely, uncompassionate, unction, uncultivated, uncurbed |
| 1465–1484 · U | undefiled, under-the-table, underbred, undesiring, undigested, undistorted, undynamic, unembellished, unerring, unexcitable, unexpressive, unfeigned, unfitting, unflurried, unflustered, unforceful, ungoverned, ungregarious, unhoped-for, unidimensional |
| 1485–1504 · U | unimpassioned, uninflected, unliterary, unmannered, unmarred, unmeaning, unmediated, unmodifiable, unmodulated, unneighbourly, unornamented, unperceivable, unpresidential, unquiet, unreconstructed, unreflective, unregenerate, unsensational, unsocial, unstinted |
| 1505–1513 · U | unstrung, unstylish, unswayed, untalkative, untempered, untheatrical, unthoughtful, unutterable, unvarying |
| 1514–1531 · V | valedictory, vamp, vaporous, vehicular, verbalisation, verbalism, vertiginous, vestigial, vexatious, vinegary, virile, viva, viva-voce, voguish, voicelessness, voiceprint, vowellike, vulpine |
| 1532–1548 · W | waggery, waggishness, walk-on, wan, wanton, warm-blooded, warriorlike, washed-out, weasel-worded, well-conducted, well-favoured, well-grounded, well-knit, well-turned, well-wishing, windiness, word-painting |
| 1549–1549 · X | xerographic |
Advanced — optional specialist reading: words 1550–2000
A · B · C · D · E · F · H · I · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · X
| Sequence and initial | Words, in sequence |
|---|---|
| 1550–1569 · A | abdominous, ablutionary, aboral, abroach, absolutistic, absolvitory, abstentious, abstractive, acceptive, accessional, accusatorial, acephalous, acervate, acritical, aculeate, adductive, adjunctive, adjuratory, adjuvant, admissive |
| 1570–1589 · A | adulterine, adumbrative, adust, adventive, adynamic, aeonian, aeriform, aestival, affixal, aflare, aflicker, agaze, agglomerative, alabastrine, alacritous, albescent, algid, aliform, alimental, alimentative |
| 1590–1609 · A | alliaceous, allocable, alpestrine, alterative, amaranthine, amative, amatory, ambiversive, ameliorative, amethystine, amphitheatric, amphoric, amusive, anacoluthic, anagogic, anagrammatic, anamnestic, anfractuous, anguine, angulate |
| 1610–1629 · A | animatistic, annihilative, annunciatory, anthropic, antiheretical, antistrophic, aoristic, apopemptic, appendant, apperceptive, appetent, appetitive, apposable, appropriative, aptitudinal, arborescent, arboresque, archidiaconal, archiepiscopal, arciform |
| 1630–1649 · A | arcuate, ariose, armillary, articulatory, arundinaceous, ascensional, ascensive, aspectual, assentient, associational, assuasive, assurgent, astatic, asterismal, astylar, atactic, ataractic, athirst, atilt, atonalistic |
| 1650–1659 · A | atonic, atrabilious, audile, auriform, autarchic, autarkic, autographic, autotypic, aversive, azonic |
| 1660–1676 · B | bacchantic, bacchic, banausic, basilican, beamish, beamy, beardown, belletristic, benedictory, bibliolatrous, bibliomaniacal, bibliopolic, bibliothecal, biform, boustrophedonic, brisant, brumous |
| 1677–1696 · C | cacuminal, cadent, caducean, caducous, calando, calefacient, caliginous, calisthenic, campestral, camphoraceous, candent, canicular, canorous, canty, capitular, caprine, cataphatic, categorematic, catoptric, centesimal |
| 1697–1716 · C | certificatory, chartaceous, chatoyant, cherty, chiasmic, chthonic, churrigueresque, cinerary, circumboreal, cisalpine, classicistic, co-occurrent, coetaneous, coextensive, columniform, combinational, comminatory, communicational, concavo-concave, concavo-convex |
| 1717–1736 · C | concessive, concretistic, concupiscent, confutative, congeneric, connatural, consolidative, constitutive, constrictive, contaminative, contrarious, cordiform, coreferential, coriaceous, corinthian, corneous, corpuscular, corroborant, coruscant, cosmogenic |
| 1737–1749 · C | coterminous, couthy, cragfast, crenulate, criminative, criterial, cross-modal, cross-sentential, cruciate, crustose, cumuliform, curtal, cyclopean |
| 1750–1769 · D | daedal, declivitous, decompound, deformational, degressive, demulcent, dendriform, dendroid, denticulate, detonative, detractive, dexter, dextral, diamantine, diatomic, dilettantish, diluvial, dimorphic, direful, disavowable |
| 1770–1783 · D | discoid, discorporate, discrepant, discriminable, discriminative, disintegrable, disintegrative, dislogistic, dissatisfactory, disseminative, dissimulative, dissociable, dissoluble, dysphemistic |
| 1784–1789 · E | eidetic, emarginate, endogenic, ensiform, epideictic, erose |
| 1790–1797 · F | falcate, farinaceous, fastigiate, fenestral, fictile, foliose, frangible, fungoid |
| 1798–1799 · H | heterological, hydrous |
| 1800–1806 · I | ichorous, ideographic, idiographic, ignescent, infinitival, intrasentential, intumescent |
| 1807–1816 · L | lanate, lancinate, laniary, lentiform, lexicostatistic, liquescent, loathly, lowbred, luculent, lucullan |
| 1817–1829 · M | maculate, majuscular, marmoreal, medusoid, megascopic, mesial, micaceous, minacious, monogenic, monomorphemic, monosemous, monotypic, multiphase |
| 1830–1832 · N | nacreous, nonlexical, nurturant |
| 1833–1839 · O | olfactive, omissive, opprobrious, optative, originative, ornithological, osseous |
| 1840–1859 · P | parisology, paronym, paroxytone, pastorale, patristics, patrology, perfervid, perspicacious, pertainym, pervious, pestiferous, phantasmal, phylactery, piscatorial, piscine, plaguey, planoconcave, planographic, plantigrade, pleomorphic |
| 1860–1879 · P | pleonasm, plosion, pluperfect, poesy, polymorphemic, polyphone, postpositive, prenominal, prolate, prolegomenon, prolusory, propagandistic, propagative, prosodion, prothalamion, protogeometric, protractile, protrusive, protuberant, psychogenic |
| 1880–1883 · P | psychokinesis, psychomotor, pulchritudinous, putative |
| 1884–1886 · Q | quaggy, quantal, quaternary |
| 1887–1900 · R | raillery, recriminative, rejective, relatum, renunciant, renunciative, requiescat, retractile, retroflexion, riant, rogation, rosaceous, rotatory, ruthful |
| 1901–1920 · S | samizdat, sandhi, sapient, saponaceous, sapphic, sapphirine, saraband, saurian, schismatic, scolion, scopal, segmental, self-abnegating, sentential, separative, sericeous, sesquipedality, sibilation, sibylline, sinistral |
| 1921–1940 · S | soi-disant, sonant, soporiferous, sororal, sottish, southernism, specular, spirant, sprechgesang, sprechstimme, stative, stemmatic, striate, styptic, sub-rosa, subacid, subfusc, subliterary, subornation, substantival |
| 1941–1955 · S | subtonic, sudorific, sumpsimus, sumptuary, suppositional, suppositious, surd, suspiration, susurration, susurrous, swart, symploce, syncategorem, syncategorematic, synsemantic |
| 1956–1975 · T | telekinesis, tellurian, tentacular, terrene, testaceous, tetragram, tetrametric, thalassic, thanatopsis, ticket-of-leave, tipstaff, tocsin, tractile, tractive, traducement, tralatitious, transeunt, tripos, troponym, tumescent |
| 1976–1977 · T | tumid, tushery |
| 1978–1982 · U | ukase, ultima, umpirage, univocal, unwilled |
| 1983–1997 · V | valetudinarian, variform, variorum, vatic, vegetal, vermicular, vermiform, vicarial, vinaceous, vinous, virgule, vocable, vocalic, vocalism, volvelle |
| 1998–1999 · W | wellerism, wordnet |
| 2000–2000 · X | xanthous |
Using this bank
recognise tone, describe a writer's voice and explain your interpretation without presenting a guess about intention as a fact.
The complete list is above. Go to age guidance, the practical method, definitions and examples, common problems, frequent questions or all published age banks.
A message says, ‘Fine. Do it your way.’ What can you safely say about it? You can quote the wording. You can notice the short sentences. You might read impatience, resignation or straightforward agreement into them. To choose between those readings, you need more of the exchange. This page gives you vocabulary for making that distinction in conversations, reviews, fiction and media.
Begin with a word that solves a reading problem you already have. Perhaps a review feels preachy, an advertisement sounds extravagant, or a narrator seems unwilling to admit something. Find the relevant word, check its meaning, then return to the passage. A useful description should let another reader see what you noticed. If the description requires you to invent the speaker's private thoughts, make that uncertainty visible.
The list also includes language for character, atmosphere and physical description. Some entries are useful in ordinary conversation; others are terms you may meet in criticism, older writing or a particular field. Treat specialist vocabulary as an optional reference shelf. You can understand a word while choosing a more familiar expression when you speak or write. Precision includes knowing which word your reader will understand.
What Age 21 means here
Purdue OWL distinguishes tone, the attitude conveyed towards subject and reader, from mood, the atmosphere of a piece. It also explains that an intended audience affects diction. Those distinctions offer useful questions for close reading; they do not reveal a writer's private intentions. Purdue OWL: Tone, Mood, and Audience.
Age 21 identifies this volume in the Young Adult series. The bands are editorial reading routes within this word bank, not developmental standards, assessment results or a required vocabulary for every 21-year-old. ‘Top’ describes the editorial selection; it is not a measured frequency ranking.
| Band | What it means here | How to choose |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | A starting route within this collection | Choose an entry that fits something you already notice, discuss or enjoy. |
| Intermediate | More detail, description and relationships | Choose a word that makes an existing idea more precise or adds a useful distinction. |
| Advanced | Optional specialist reading extension | Use a term only when a suitable text, interest or question gives it a meaningful context. |
Back to the word list · Guide and examples
Read the wording before deciding the motive
1. Keep the actual words beside your interpretation
Choose a short passage and preserve enough of it to show who is speaking and what they are responding to. Write one observation before choosing a tone label: ‘The speaker repeats the request three times.’ You can verify that observation against the passage. Next write your interpretation: ‘The repetition makes the request sound insistent to me.’ Keep those two sentences separate in your notes.
2. Decide what your label describes
A label can describe the language, a fictional character, an advertising technique or your response as a reader. State which one you mean. ‘The closing paragraph sounds preachy’ identifies a passage and an impression. ‘The author is preachy’ extends that judgement to a person. For a book, also identify whether the words belong to a narrator, a character or an outside commentator.
3. Check the word's sense and register
Read a dictionary entry rather than choosing a term from a list of synonyms alone. Try a plain paraphrase beside it. For example, putative means that someone is generally supposed to hold a role; it leaves room for that supposition to be wrong. If your sentence needs confirmed authorship, putative changes the claim. Keep the original uncertainty when you summarise.
4. Test another plausible reading
Ask what else could explain the same wording. A brief reply might reflect haste. An elaborate sentence might fit the setting. A joking exchange might depend on a shared history you have not seen. You do not have to treat every possibility as equally likely. Identify the reading the available passage supports, and say what additional context would strengthen or weaken it.
5. Choose a response that fits the evidence
For a review, connect your label to a specific feature. For a conversation, ask a clear question: ‘When you said that, were you agreeing or expressing a concern?’ For a factual media claim, follow the link to its evidence. If the context remains incomplete, use wording such as ‘I read this as…’ or ‘This passage suggests…’ and leave the remaining question open.
Purdue OWL's source-evaluation guidance recommends examining purpose, audience, language and supporting evidence, and checking information against other sources. It also observes that propaganda can use selected true information. The five-step routine here is an original editorial practice built around those questions, not a validated test of tone or a method for detecting a hidden motive. Purdue OWL: Evaluating Sources—General Guidelines.
Back to the word list · Guide and examples
Useful meanings and examples from ordinary life
Examples use familiar words from across the series, including earlier volumes. The no-repeat rule applies only to the numbered bank entries. The situations are illustrative, and the linked sources support the meanings. Each short meaning explains the intended sense in its example; it is not an exhaustive dictionary entry.
1. An unfamiliar speaking style
patois — a local variety of a language associated with a particular area
‘The narrator changes from formal narration to the patois spoken in her home village.’
Identify a language variety accurately when the text supplies that context. The label gives you no reason to infer carelessness, hostility or a speaker's intelligence. If you cannot identify the variety, describe the particular expression instead.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Patois.
2. Repetition in an interview
pleonasm — extra wording that repeats meaning, sometimes deliberately for emphasis
‘We will meet together at noon,’ the organiser said.
Together repeats something already contained in meet in this example. You could shorten the sentence for a practical notice. In dialogue, consider whether the extra wording contributes to emphasis or voice before treating it as a mistake.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Pleonasm.
3. An enthusiastic product description
puffery — inflated praise, especially in promotional language
‘The most magnificent notebook the world has ever seen.’
Point to the sweeping praise. Then look separately for details you can check, such as page size or paper weight. This example uses the ordinary vocabulary meaning of puffery; it makes no legal judgement about an advertisement.
Meaning reference: Collins Dictionary: Puffery.
4. Friendly teasing in fiction
raillery — light, good-humoured teasing
‘Our punctual champion,’ Mara said, as her friend arrived with an apology and they both laughed.
The shared laughter supports a friendly reading in this invented scene. If the surrounding scene showed distress or repeated objections, reconsider the label. Calling an exchange raillery does not settle whether the person addressed welcomed it.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Raillery.
5. An uncertain attribution
putative — generally supposed to be the person or thing described
‘The putative author of the unsigned letter has not commented.’
The sentence identifies a suspected or generally accepted attribution while leaving it unconfirmed. A summary that simply names ‘the author’ would remove that qualification. Preserve the distinction unless separate evidence establishes authorship.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Putative.
6. A campaign's selective presentation
propagandistic — characteristic of material designed to promote a cause or viewpoint through propaganda
‘The film presents only triumphant scenes and urges every viewer to join the movement.’
Describe the selective scenes and the appeal to join before applying the label. Evaluate particular factual statements on their evidence. A judgement about the film's persuasive approach cannot by itself establish whether every statement in it is false.
Meaning reference: Collins Dictionary: Propagandistic.
7. A review of an advice column
preachy — sounding insistently moralising or eager to instruct others about proper behaviour
‘Every sensible person must live exactly as I do,’ the columnist concludes.
A reviewer could connect preachy to the demand that everyone adopt the speaker's example. Keep the criticism focused on the passage. You can still examine whether any individual piece of advice is useful, clearly explained or supported.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Preachy.
8. A suspected hidden purpose
ulterior — describing a reason or intention kept behind the stated one
‘I wondered whether the invitation had an ulterior purpose, but I had no evidence of one.’
The sentence marks a suspicion as a suspicion. Before alleging a concealed purpose, ask what supports that claim. A formal style, an awkward pause or an unfamiliar expression alone leaves substantial room for other explanations.
Meaning reference: Cambridge Dictionary: Ulterior.
Give your interpretation a visible basis
Try a compact note with three parts: wording, reading, remaining question. For a fictional message saying ‘How generous of you to remember,’ the wording is the quoted sentence. Your reading might be appreciation or sarcasm. The remaining question is what happened before it: was the gesture thoughtful, late or unwanted? When you have the surrounding paragraph, revise the note. This keeps a first impression available for examination instead of allowing it to harden into a claim you cannot support.
For a longer passage, keep a few concrete features in view. Look at what the speaker names, what they repeat, where they qualify a statement and how they address the audience. Then try one precise descriptive word and a plain explanation. ‘The closing passage is insistent because the same request appears three times’ gives a reader something to assess. A pile of impressive adjectives gives them less to work with when none is tied to the passage.
Use the same discipline when writing about a character. Say what the character does or says before assigning a broad trait. A person who conceals one detail in a story may have reasons the reader has not yet encountered. Record the particular concealment and your current interpretation. Later chapters may support it, complicate it or overturn it. In everyday discussion, leave a similar opening for clarification when you have only part of an exchange.
Back to the word list · Guide and examples
Five possible occasions to return to a useful word
Choose occasions that fit naturally. These are not five compulsory days, and there is no daily quota or completion deadline. Repeat, change or stop an activity according to your interest and purpose.
| Occasion | What to try |
|---|---|
| While reading a review | Choose one judgement about style. Underline the evidence the reviewer supplies for it. If none is supplied, write the question you would need answered before accepting the description. Look up one unfamiliar term only if it helps that decision. |
| While reading a story | Take one short piece of dialogue. Identify its speaker, listener and immediate situation. Write a possible tone and a second reading that the wider scene might support. Return to the note after the scene develops. |
| Before forwarding a striking post | Separate its factual statement from the language that makes it memorable. Open the underlying source when available. Preserve qualifications in your summary, and leave out a confident claim about the writer's motive if you cannot support it. |
| Before replying to an ambiguous message | Draft a question about the point that matters: agreement, timing, responsibility or a concern. Read it once for clarity. Replace a broad accusation with a request the other person can answer directly. |
| When you return to this word bank | Revisit a word you used in a real note, conversation or review. Check whether its meaning still fits. Keep the useful example beside the definition. A small collection of words you can explain is a sensible way to navigate the larger reference. |
Reading across subjects and languages
Let the topic guide your reading. A story, information book, picture, recipe, sign or instruction can give a word a useful context. Read with someone when you want support, or discuss an unfamiliar passage afterwards. Pause for a necessary explanation and return to the meaning of the passage.
If you use more than one language, add a translation or a familiar explanation to your own notes when that helps. Check it against the particular sentence: one English word may need different translations in different settings. This English bank is a reference you can adapt, not a measure of everything you know.
When something is not working
| What you notice | A useful adjustment |
|---|---|
| I can feel a tone but cannot explain it | Locate one phrase that creates the impression. Try describing that phrase in ordinary language before searching for a specialist term. If you cannot identify supporting wording, retain the impression as tentative. |
| Two dictionary senses both seem possible | Read the complete sentence and the surrounding exchange. Try substituting a plain paraphrase for each sense. If both still fit, explain the ambiguity instead of silently choosing whichever interpretation makes your argument stronger. |
| A familiar tone label becomes an accusation | Limit the description to the passage and show the evidence. ‘This reply sounds dismissive to me’ leaves room for clarification. A claim about someone's settled character needs more support than one ambiguous reply provides. |
| I am collecting words I never use | Keep a recognition list for terms encountered in books or criticism. Keep a separate short list for words that improve your own communication. You can understand specialist language without using it in every conversation. |
| Someone disagrees with my reading | Ask which words or contextual details support their interpretation. Compare those details with yours. Change your account where the evidence warrants it; record an unresolved disagreement where the available passage does not settle the question. |
Back to the word list · Guide and examples
Frequently asked questions
Does an advanced word make an interpretation stronger?
Only when its meaning fits and you explain why. A familiar word tied to specific evidence can be more useful than an obscure label. Use the advanced section for a distinction you need or a term you have encountered, and provide a plain explanation when your reader may not know it.
Can I identify sarcasm from punctuation?
Treat punctuation as one feature of the wording. Ask what the sentence is responding to, who is speaking and what the surrounding passage establishes. When those details are missing, describe your reading as provisional. In a real conversation, a short clarification may answer the practical question more effectively than prolonged interpretation.
How should I use a word that has a disapproving tone?
Check its register and meaning, then decide whether the judgement is useful and supported. If your purpose is to resolve a disagreement, a concrete description may be easier to discuss. ‘You repeated the request after I answered’ names an action the other person can address.
Must I learn every word in this volume?
No. Use the bank as a reference and choose according to your reading, interests and communication needs. The age label organises the series. It does not establish a deadline, a test score or an expectation that every young adult should master this selection.
Can a persuasive passage also contain accurate information?
Yes. Examine the individual claim and its supporting source, then examine how the passage selects and presents it. Purdue OWL's guidance discusses the selective use of true information in propaganda. You can identify a persuasive purpose while still checking particular statements carefully.
The sequence and word audit
Age 21: 2,000 distinct listed entries. This volume occupies series positions 40,001–42,000. The published collection currently contains Ages 1–24, with 48,000 distinct listed entries across twenty-four banks.
The audit checks the numbered list entries, rather than every word in the article. Case, spacing, hyphens, apostrophes, accents and recorded spelling variants are normalised to catch duplicates. Established single words and conventional hyphenated headwords count as entries. Different meanings of the same spelling do not receive extra entries. Some useful derived forms are separate entries; the total is not a count of unrelated word families.
“Top” means an editorial selection for this reference project. It does not mean the most frequent words in a measured language corpus or the best 2,000 words for every reader. Sequence numbers locate entries in the collection; they are not importance scores or developmental measures.
Keep repeating useful words in real life. The non-repeating lists offer additional choices. They do not recommend withholding familiar language or learning 2,000 new words at each birthday.
Age 1: 2,000-word bank · Age 2: 2,000-word bank · Age 3: 2,000-word bank · Age 4: 2,000-word bank · Age 5: 2,000-word bank · Age 6: 2,000-word bank · Age 7: 2,000-word bank · Age 8: 2,000-word bank · Age 9: 2,000-word bank · Age 10: 2,000-word bank · Age 11: 2,000-word bank · Age 12: 2,000-word bank · Age 13: 2,000-word bank · Age 14: 2,000-word bank · Age 15: 2,000-word bank · Age 16: 2,000-word bank · Age 17: 2,000-word bank · Age 18: 2,000-word bank · Age 19: 2,000-word bank · Age 20: 2,000-word bank · Age 21: 2,000-word bank · Age 22: 2,000-word bank · Age 23: 2,000-word bank · Age 24: 2,000-word bank
| Published volume | Series positions |
|---|---|
| Age 1 | 1–2,000 |
| Age 2 | 2,001–4,000 |
| Age 3 | 4,001–6,000 |
| Age 4 | 6,001–8,000 |
| Age 5 | 8,001–10,000 |
| Age 6 | 10,001–12,000 |
| Age 7 | 12,001–14,000 |
| Age 8 | 14,001–16,000 |
| Age 9 | 16,001–18,000 |
| Age 10 | 18,001–20,000 |
| Age 11 | 20,001–22,000 |
| Age 12 | 22,001–24,000 |
| Age 13 | 24,001–26,000 |
| Age 14 | 26,001–28,000 |
| Age 15 | 28,001–30,000 |
| Age 16 | 30,001–32,000 |
| Age 17 | 32,001–34,000 |
| Age 18 | 34,001–36,000 |
| Age 19 | 36,001–38,000 |
| Age 20 | 38,001–40,000 |
| Age 21 | 40,001–42,000 |
| Age 22 | 42,001–44,000 |
| Age 23 | 44,001–46,000 |
| Age 24 | 46,001–48,000 |
Entry counts and cross-age allocation checked on 3 November 2026 (Asia/Singapore). The selection is an original editorial resource. The sources below support the attributed communication, observation and reading guidance; they do not endorse or validate this particular word bank.
A useful next step
Choose one message or paragraph you recently found difficult to read. Save the wording, write your interpretation and name the missing context. Look up one relevant word from this bank. Finish with a sentence you would be willing to show another reader: it should explain your judgement and make its limits clear.
Back to the word list · Guide and examples
Sources and editorial note
Purdue OWL: Tone, Mood, and Audience
Purdue OWL: Evaluating Sources—General Guidelines
Cambridge Dictionary: Pleonasm
Cambridge Dictionary: Raillery
Cambridge Dictionary: Putative
Collins Dictionary: Propagandistic
Cambridge Dictionary: Ulterior
The guides, definitions and examples are original eduKate editorial explanations. The cited organisations do not endorse this page. “Top” describes the editorial selection; no search ranking, measured word-frequency order or learning outcome is promised.
Lexical reference: WordNet 3.1. Words were selected and reviewed individually; database inclusion does not validate the audience label or difficulty bands.
Additional lexical checks used Open English Wordnet 2025 under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0. The selection and original guide are editorial adaptations, not endorsements by the source projects.
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edu|Kate Singapore · Clear words for useful conversations, reading and everyday understanding.