Childrens Illustrated Thesaurus

120

A B C D E G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

F

incredible

incredible^2

adjective impossible to believe

» Sofia told an incredible story

about a dragon trapped in

a mountain cave.

absurd, far-fetched,

improbable, unbelievable,

unimaginable, unthinkable,

implausible, inconceivable,

preposterous

indecent

adjective shocking or rude

» Carter refused to play

the song because its lyrics

were indecent.

crude, improper,

rude, vulgar

independent^1

adjective separate from other

people or things » Each hiker

had their independent tent in

the clearing.

autonomous, free,

separate, unrelated

independent^2

adjective not needing other

people’s help » Zoe is a

fiercely independent child.

individualistic, liberated,

self-sufficient, unaided

indicate

verb to show something » He

smiled to indicate his relief.

denote, reveal, show,

signal, signify, imply,

manifest, point to

indication

noun a sign of something

» Rohan gave no indication

that he had heard me.

clue, hint, sign, signal,

suggestion, warning,

intimation

indirect

adjective not done or going

directly but by another way

» We took an indirect route

to avoid the traffic jam.

meandering, oblique,

rambling, roundabout,

tortuous, wandering

antonym: direct

individual^1

adjective relating to separate

people or things

» Maria made individual

chocolate cakes for the

twins’ birthday celebration.

discrete (formal),

independent,

separate, single

individual^2

adjective different and unusual

» I have developed my own

individual writing style.

characteristic, distinctive,

idiosyncratic, original,

personal, special, unique

individual^3

noun a person, different from

any other person

» Tim took part in the

competition as an individual.

character, party, person,

soul, personage

industrious

adjective tending to work hard

» The industrious bees were

making honey in their hive.

busy, conscientious,

diligent, hard-working,

tireless

antonym: lazy

inefficient

adjective badly organized

and slow » We live in the

countryside and have an

inefficient bus service.

disorganized, incapable,

incompetent, inept, sloppy,

ineffectual, inexpert,

slipshod

antonym: efficient

inexperienced

adjective lacking experience

of a situation or activity

» Inexperienced drivers

should avoid roads in big cities.

green (informal), naive,

new, raw, unaccustomed

antonym: experienced

infect

verb to cause disease in

something » One mosquito

can infect many people.

affect, blight,

contaminate, taint

infectious

adjective spreading from one

person to another » My cold

was infectious – my whole

family caught it.

catching, contagious,

spreading, communicable,

virulent

inferior^1

adjective having a lower

position than something or

someone else » The status

of a prince is inferior to

that of a king.

lesser, lower, minor,

secondary, second-class,

subordinate

antonym: superior

inferior^2

adjective of low quality

» Ruben gave an inferior

performance because

he was feeling unwell.

mediocre, poor,

second-class,

second-rate, shoddy

antonym: superior

inferior^3

noun a person in a lower

position than another

» You must be polite

to your inferiors.

junior, menial, subordinate,

underling

antonym: superior

infinite

adjective without any limit or

end » The start of the school

holidays presented an infinite

number of possibilities.

boundless, eternal,

everlasting, inexhaustible,

perpetual, untold,

bottomless, interminable,

limitless

influence^1

noun power over other people

» Ethan has quite a lot of

influence over his classmates.

authority, control,

importance, power, sway,

ascendancy, domination

influence^2

noun an effect that someone

or something has » Lily stayed

up late, under the influence

of her friend.

effect, hold, magnetism,

spell, weight

influence^3

verb to have an effect on

someone or something

» Older siblings can influence

their younger siblings.

affect, control, direct,

guide, manipulate, sway

inform

verb to tell someone about

something » Please inform

me of any delays.

advise (formal), brief,

enlighten, notify, tell,

apprise, communicate

Each hiker had their independent

tent in the clearing.

The industrious bees were making

honey in their hive.

My cold was infectious – my whole

family caught it.

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